Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CENT opened at $42.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $41.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.95. The company has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.69 and a beta of 0.67. Central Garden & Pet has a 12-month low of $29.52 and a 12-month high of $46.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 3.79 and a quick ratio of 2.67.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $883.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $882.96 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.13% and a net margin of 5.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.56 earnings per share. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.850- EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John Walker, III sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.50, for a total value of $192,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 64,679 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,490,141.50. This represents a 7.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 8.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Central Garden & Pet

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 119.9% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter worth approximately $80,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 1,532.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,732 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.13% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ: CENT) is a marketer and manufacturer of products for the pet and garden markets. The company sells its products through retailers, distributors, e-commerce channels and other outlets, serving consumers primarily in the United States.

Its Pet segment offers products for dogs, cats, birds, fish, reptiles and small animals. Product categories include treats, toys, bedding, habitats, aquatics supplies, animal health products and training or waste-management products.